The present invention relates to a fluid dispenser comprising a receptacle provided with a neck, and a dispensing member such as a pump or a valve. A fixing member is provided for fixing the pump or the valve to the neck of the receptacle. This is an entirely conventional design for a dispenser in the fields of perfumes, cosmetics, or indeed pharmaceuticals. This type of dispenser is actuated by pressing with a finger on a pusher which moves an actuating rod inside the body of the pump or of the valve. As a result, a metered quantity or a continuous jet of fluid is dispensed.
In the prior art, there exist numerous techniques for fixing a pump or a valve to the neck of a receptacle. The most commonly used techniques are snap-fastening, crimping, and screwing. For that purpose, a fixing member is used that is often in the form of a ring or a turret that co-operates with the outside wall of the neck of the receptacle. In general, the neck is provided with a thickened outside rim which extends over a certain height of the neck or which can also be provided with an outside thread serving to co-operate with an inside thread formed inside the fixing member. To hold the pump or the valve, the fixing member is provided with a recess in which the pump or the valve is often received by snap-fastening. Thus, the fixing member forms a transition between the pump or the valve and the neck of the receptacle.
In the prior art devices, since the fixing member co-operates with the outside wall of the neck of the receptacle, the fixing member must have a relatively large diameter, which sometimes spoils the appearance of the dispenser, in particular in the field of perfumes.
Prior art devices that solve that problem already exist. For example, reference may be made to Document U.S. Pat. No. 5,277,340 which describes a dispenser in which the pump is fixed by means of a fixing ring that co-operates with the inside wall of the neck of the reservoir. For that purpose, the inside wall of the neck of the reservoir is provided with a notch in which a sleeve formed by the fixing ring is received. The sleeve is resilient so that it can be stressed and can then relax inside the notch formed in the inside wall of the neck of the reservoir. It is thus possible to fix a pump inside a reservoir without the fixing ring being visible from the outside.
Reference may be also be made to Document U.S. Pat. No. 3,937,366 which describes a distributor in which the pump is also fixed by means of a fixing ring inside a reservoir neck. In a manner similar to the above-mentioned document, the inside wall of the neck defines a groove in which a bead on the fixing ring is snap-fastened.
Unfortunately, those prior art devices suffer from the drawback that the snap-fastening in the neck is not entirely stable, or secure if the pump is pulled outwards.
An object of the present invention is thus to remedy that prior art drawback by defining a dispenser in which the inside snap-fastening of the fixing ring is definitive and entirely stable.
To this end, the present invention provides a fluid dispenser comprising:
a receptacle containing the fluid, said receptacle having a neck defining an inside wall;
a dispensing member such as a pump or a valve; and
a fixing member for fixing the dispensing member to the neck of the receptacle;
the fixing member co-operating with the inside wall of the neck, said inside wall of the neck being provided with at least one notch which extends over at least a portion of the periphery of the neck, and the fixing member being provided with snap-fastening means suitable for being received in said notch in the inside wall of the neck, said fixing member being provided with a skirt serving to be engaged in the neck of the receptacle, the snap-fastening means comprising an outside radial projection suitable for coming to be received in said notch in the inside wall of the neck;
the snap-fastening means further comprising a locking ring engaged by force in the skirt to the level of the notch in the inside wall of the neck.
The locking ring, which must naturally be made of a rigid, non-deformable material, may be constituted by a separate element, but it may also be constituted by an element of the dispensing member. The locking ring may be formed by the body of the dispensing member, by a separate ring, but also by a ferrule engaged by force in the body of the dispensing member.
As regards the fixing member, it may be formed by a fixing ring independent of the dispensing member, but it may also be formed by the body of the dispensing member itself. In which case, the locking ring must be formed by the ferrule engaged in the body of the dispensing member. In particular, it is advantageous to use such a ferrule because it is an element that is particularly rigid and that does not tend to deform. In general, the ferrule defines the rest position of the piston, i.e. its top dead center. When the fixing member is formed by a separate fixing ring, it is advantageous for the body of the dispensing member to be slidably received in tight-fitting manner in the skirt. It is then possible, when assembling the dispenser, firstly to engage the fixing ring in the neck so that the radial projection comes to be received in the notch, and then to engage the dispensing member in the ring so as to position the ferrule at the level of the projection, thereby locking the snap-fastening of the fixing ring in the notch formed in the inside wall of the neck of the reservoir. It is then possible to deliver the dispenser member with its body partially engaged in the fixing member. The person in charge of filling and assembling the dispensing member then merely needs to proceed in the manner indicated above.
According to another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the fixing member forms a recess in which a nozzle is received. It is also possible for the fixing member to form a swirl chamber and swirl channels. Similarly, the fixing member may form an outlet channel for the fluid. It is thus possible to omit any additional part for performing these functions. The body of the dispensing member is also simplified.
According to another characteristic, the fixing member is covered with a trim band. Preferably, when the fixing member forms a recess for a nozzle, the trim band is provided with a hole at the level of the nozzle.
According to another characteristic, the fixing member is provided with an outside collar serving to come into abutment against the top edge of the neck, optionally with a gasket being interposed.
The invention is described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings which give embodiments of the invention by way of non-limiting example.